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Chemical composition and anti-nutrients of Salicornia bigelovii and the effect of its dietary inclusion on feed intake, growth performance, and nutrient digestibility in fattening lambs

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University.

2 Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

3 Associate professor of animal nutrition, Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

This research aimed to assess the effect of feeding Salicornia bigelovii fodder on the growth and carcass performance of fattening lambs. The experiment was conducted using 63 male Afshari lambs in a completely randomized design with seven treatments and nine replications for 100 days. The treatments were diet without Salicornia (control) and diets containing levels of 45, 90, 135, 180, 225, and 270 g Salicornia, instead of alfalfa/kg DM. Compared to alfalfa, Salicornia contained lower amounts of protein, nitrate, and neutral detergent fiber (NDF), but higher content of ash, sodium, oxalate, and phenolic compounds. Feeding increasing levels of Salicornia caused a linear increase in daily water consumption (P<0.05). Daily intake of DM increased with increasing Salicornia levels (P=0.05), but consumption of organic matter (OM) and crude protein did not differ. Salicornia feeding had no significant effect on daily growth and feed conversion based on diet OM, but at levels of 135 g and more, it caused a decrease in feed conversion based on diet DM. Digestibility of DM (P=0.072) and ash (P=0.012) increased and NDF digestibility decreased (P=0.048) with increasing Salicornia consumption, but the digestibility of OM, crude protein and ether extract, and carcass yield did not change. Overall, feeding Salicornia up to 270 g/kg diet DM (with a forage-to-concentrate ratio of 40:60) increased the water consumption of animals, but it did not have a negative effect on the performance of fattening lambs, and it can be recommended to replace a portion of the diet forage in male Afshari sheep.

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References
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Research Journal of Livestock Science
Volume 37, Issue 145
March 2025
Pages 137-152
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